Tuesday

Nanny's Punishment Makes Child Sick

We hired a nanny for 1/2 days in the summer.

We fired our nanny.

She had been punishing our children by making them take a tablespoon of pickle juice for fighting, a tablespoon of vinegar for arguing and had threatened them with Tabasco sauce, which she walked around with in little packets in her jeans.

We only found out about this because my son was sick to his stomach yesterday when we got home. The nanny had left. I told him I would call the doctor and he told me "not to worry" that "this happens sometimes" and he had "a bad day fighting with his sister". I am shocked that she did this. I am shocked that neither of them ever told me.

The point in writing this is to make sure your children know they can tell you anything. My son told me he didn't want me to know he had been fighting with his sister or arguing with the nanny. My children are young enough that keeping their own misbehavior from me was all they needed to allow the nanny to keep dispensing her bizarre discipline. Make sure your kids know that they can come to you with the big things and small things.

When I fired the nanny, she seemed confused. She didn't think what she did was bad at all. (!)

Was she foreign or an older lady? My grandmother used to put pepper or cinnamon on our tongues when I was little if she didn't like what we were saying. I'm certainly not saying it's okay (it's not), I'm just wondering if she's from a different era or culture where that's acceptable.

My mother used to give us tobasco sauce when we were misbehaving as well. It never harmed us, vinegar is not harmful, nor is pickle juice, you may have overreacted and you could have just spoken with her to make it clear that you did not want that form of discipline. Lesson learned, put it in your contract next time.

Um. How about you stop attacking the anons, and maybe pay attention when one said that she should have had a DISCUSSION with the nanny-the OP even said that she was confused as to why she was getting fired, they clearly never discussed discipline, so let's not put all the blame on the nanny. She could have grown up in an environment where that was seen as a normal punishment. Jesus. Learn to read, people. The parents also need to have accountability for when they don't communicate their needs or standards with their employees.

Yes parents should always communicate as clearly as possible, but this is something that wouldn't ever occur to me to say. Asking a trusted childcare professional to not hurt my kids wouldn't cross my mind.

Sorry, It wasn't Angie, she's innocent, I don't think she cares if someone on the internet disagrees with her.

And YES, parents should make it known what type of discipline they will accept. The nanny didn't inflict pain-or at least she didn't think she was, it was an unpleasant experience for the child, I'm sure if she knew that the boy was getting sick, she wouldn't have done it. I've never heard of a child getting sick from pickle juice, that's ridiculous. But that's not the point. You can't always pass off the buck to the nanny, when the parents weren't responsible with communication.

This isn't corporal punishment, not even close. What world did you grow up in? I doubt they feared the nanny-sounds like they were more afraid of telling the mother-what does that say?

You wouldn't think to talk about discipline methods with a nanny that works with your child? You shouldn't get a nanny. That is absurd to me.

I disagree. Children should not be given hot sauce, vinegar or whatever else as punishment.

I grew up in a world in which my nanny didn't try to cause me pain or discomfort.

They were fearful of telling the mother because the nanny hurt them. Maybe they feared further punishment. Who knows, but would never do this to a child.

I've never run across this type of punishment so it'd never occur to me to be on the look out for it. No parent has ever told me not to spank either because it would not cross their mind to say "no harming the children "

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